Five organizers of the tournament were arrested and charged with illegal gambling, which occurs when a game has a buy-in and a payout and the outcome is determined predominantly by chance, or luck. There are exceptions, such as if everyone involved has a “bona fide” social relationship.

Poker supporters contend that the popular card game shouldn’t be considered gambling because it requires more skill than luck.

In January 2009, a county court jury acquitted the first defendant to go to trial, Kevin Raley, and charges against the others were subsequently dropped. During trial, the Windsor resident called an expert – University of Denver professor Bob Hannum – to testify that poker is a game of skill.

Raley also presented evidence that players in the tournament had a social relationship. Jurors didn’t state a reason for the not-guilty verdict, so it’s unclear which argument swayed them.

Even though Raley won’t be retried, the state appealed to the district court the ruling that allowed Hannum to testify, seeking to clarify Colorado’s gambling laws in regard to poker for future prosecutions.

Last August, Weld County District Court Judge James Hartmann ruled that the county court judge erred in allowing Hannum to testify because poker is already considered gambling under Colorado law.

Raley, with support from the Poker Players Alliance, an advocacy group, then asked the state Supreme Court to review the case.

Ummmm, I am as big a fan of poker as there is, & I say it is gambling. Those who say it isn’t are merely bending the facts to suit their needs. The lottery & the stock market are forms of gambling as well. That being said, I have a solution….decrimilize all gaming all together. There, now we eliminate the confusion of what the law actually says.

Emilie Rusch covers retail and commercial real estate for The Post. A Wisconsin native and Mizzou graduate, she moved to Colorado in 2012. Before that, she worked at a small daily newspaper in South Dakota. It's the one with Mount Rushmore.